ABSTRACT
Eastern Europe has long played a crucial role in modern European history and is destined to be the focus of some of the most far-reaching changes in global politics. Most of Eastern Europe remains relatively backward, under-capitalised, under-productive and under-employed. Politics in Eastern Europe also reflects the region’s relative economic backwardness and more traditional social structure. Eastern Europe is a mosaic of peoples and cultures of very different origins and varied historical experience. It is only the experience of ‘communism’ between 1945 and 1989 that imposes a unity on the area. Many reasons have been advanced for the collapse of communism. These can be summarised under two general categories: the first category is related to the inherent weaknesses and internal structures and developments of the communist system; the second is related to external factors and global developments. The chapter also presents some closing thoughts on the key concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book.
